Have My Sins Made Me Unlovable?
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“We are factories of fresh resistances to Christ’s love. Even when we run out of tangible reasons to be cast out, such as specific sins or failures, we tend to retain a vague sense that, given enough time, Jesus will finally grow tired of us and hold us at arm’s length.” (Dane Ortlund in his book Gentle and Lowly.)
Do you find that your heart is often questioning God’s love? Bringing up “fresh resistances”? Perhaps some Christians are more prone to this than others, depending on their self-awareness, conceptual understanding of the weight of sin, or their lack of faith in Gospel forgiveness.
I know that I find myself here often. Both seeking assurance that God still loves me while simultaneously listing all the reasons He shouldn’t. Like a preverbal tennis match that never ends. We all bring objections to God’s love for us. The question is, what does God do with our objections?
What are your objections?
We all have them. Pictures. Memories. Feelings. Flashing red lights in our minds that say: “No, no, that’s too good to be true. God’s steadfast love? That’s not compatible with these pictures of what I’ve done. These memories of who I was. These feelings of who I am.”
Like regret laced fly-swatters, ready to bat away any promise of hope and love. We are serial objectors.
God is aware of your objections
And yet, what does it say about God that he is aware of our propensity to object to his love for us? Think about how many scriptures there are that directly override our objections. Here are a few of many:
Psalm 103:10 - He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities. (Meaning, you are prone to think he will deal with you according to your sins)
Lamentations 3:22-23 -The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. (You are prone to think his love will cease, but it doesn’t!)
John 8:10-11 - Jesus stood up and said to her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?” She said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you. (The woman thinks Jesus should condemn her, but He doesn’t.)
Scripture is full to the brim of God reaffirming us that His love is contrary to our default thoughts of Him.
It’s as if a self-conscience lover sits at the table with their partner. Broken, confused, and sheepishly hesitant to ask again: “Do you really love me? Even when I’m so broken” And the partner responds, with grace, gentleness, and a desire to reassure: “Yes, my love. I do love you. I will never leave you. You are mine. I wanted to be with you.”
The reassuring heart of God
God wants to reassure you of His love for you. He does not grow weary in reminding you. So let your objections fly. Lay them down at the Lord. Get them all out. Are you too bad? Too dirty? Too slow to learn? Too sexually impure? Too fake? Have you sinned too many times with the same sin? Do you still struggle with the same things you did 25 years ago?
Christ is asking, gently: “Bring your objections to me, so that I can lovingly reassure you they are no match to the realness of my love.” We see this most clearly in John 6:37 - “whoever comes to me I will never cast out”. In Gentle and Lowly, Ortlund revealed this amazing portion from John Bunyan’s paper “Come and Welcome to Jesus Christ”. In that paper, Bunyan helps us see that John 6:37 is Jesus’s own words to our objections.
We may say:
But I am a great sinner, say you.
“I will never, ever cast you out,” Says Christ
But I am an old sinner, say you.
“I will never, ever cast you out,” Says Christ
But I am a hard-hearted sinner, say you.
“I will never, ever cast you out,” Says Christ
But I am a backsliding sinner, say you.
“I will never, ever cast you out,” Says Christ
But I have served Satan all my days, say you.
“I will never, ever cast you out,” Says Christ
But I have no good things to bring with me, say you.
“I will never, ever cast you out,” Says Christ
-John Bunyan (translation updated)
God’s heart for the real you
So when you ask: “Have my sins made me unlovable?” - The answer from the heart of God is an emphatic: NO!!!! Why? Because we were broken, dirty, sinful, and rebellious when God initiated his love towards us. God is not in love with a better version of you. God cannot become disillusioned (disappointed at some new knowledge of you) because He had the full picture of how jacked up you were when He said: “I want them.”
Are your objections rising? Don’t let your heart or your feelings dictate theological truth of God’s heart. Your feelings don’t speak for God. God speaks for God. And here is what God says to your broken self:
For while you were still weak, at the right time I died for the ungodly you. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die— but I showed my love for you in that while you were still a sinner, I died for you. Since, therefore, you have now been justified by my blood, much more shall you be saved by me from the wrath of God. (Romans 5: 6-9. With the pronouns changed to 1st person)
Dear weary sinner, you are wanted by God in your present state. Repent of your wicked ways. Leave them behind for a far greater pleasure and love, namely God. It is God’s kindness that is meant to lead you to repentance. (Romans 2:4) You are not unlovable. It was precisely when you were most sinful that the heart of God went out towards you. If the suffering of the cross did not cause Jesus to stop loving you, nothing will. Let His words in the Scriptures show you His heart, despite what your feelings tell you. Let God speak for God.
Trusting His words, despite my many objections,
Josh.
